# What, exactly, is the appeal of going to a drive-in movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [September 2, 2023, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518 "2023-09-02T17:31:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/81 "2023-09-03T18:51:24Z")
There’s a cool Drive-In display in the Elk City National Route 66 Museum where you can sit in a red Chevy Convertible and watch scenes from _The Blob_: [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AIL4fc9nQd-ssYUSuZSGBL4zb1w5S_8rn0fIsaWfpoYZHXZGqWuKJOwewfOR2__VIGk5nP_Gb2XUwPokxQk71LUEYT2pMukXLpEmVcY3zrar6KK6gKEW8KC0=w600-h315-p-k "New item by Dave Carter") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/ojbUufizZ5y9mC5i7) ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/82 "2023-09-03T18:59:17Z")
This has been a great trip down memory lane. My remembrances of drive-ins are cold beer, making out, and smoking whatever we wanted to smoke (inside the car, of course). The area where our local drive-in was located was purchased by a construction company. They use it for their piles of sand and gravel, and to park their equipment. But they use the screen as a large billboard, easily visible from the highway a half-mile away. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/83 "2023-09-03T19:02:18Z")
Another fun thing about drive-ins is that during after-dark car trips, kids could get glimpses of movies from the highway. In my experience, it was usually the most terrifying moments of the horror flick that you ended up seeing… ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/84 "2023-09-03T19:10:43Z")
> [@joper](#): > > Nah, you nailed it. The smooching. Way back in the day, late 60s, early 70s or so, there was a drive in that sat alongside Hwy 80 between Sacramento and Davis CA and some bright spark got it into his head to turn it into a drive in porno theater. Whoever that was knew exactly what they were doing lol. Upshot is that as you travelled along the freeway over the Yolo Causeway there was one spot where you could get a glimpse of the screen for a second or so and we’d all be piled to one side in the back seat to see what we could see. My parents just studiously ignored the entire situation because really, WTF can you do about it? Hilarious though. > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > This. Hard to even remember how big cars were on the inside. I had a 1956 two door Pontiac station wagon at one point and you could sleep a family of four in the back with zero crowding. Dang, that thing was a TANK. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/85 "2023-09-03T19:13:37Z")
That actually created some public outcry when the drive-in near Sacramento was showing _50 Shades of Gray_, as several of their screens are visible from Highway 50. “OMG, what if a child gets a glimpse of a naked woman from the highway? Won’t somebody think of the children!” (The drive-in agreed to only show that movie on screens that couldn’t be seen from the highway.) Come to think of it, it’s kind of telling that a movie with sexual content generated outcry, but no one ever seems to care if kids might see part of a horror movie from the highway. ---
**Author:** ![mtnmatt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a3d4f5/32.png) [@mtnmatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mtnmatt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/86 "2023-09-03T19:46:42Z")
One of my earliest memories was going from NYC to a drive-in in NJ to see The Love Bug - in our white VW bug. Later, during summer vacations at Cape Cod, we regularly went to the Wellfleet Drive In, where sometimes the fog would render the screen a colorful blur. We’d go early for the playground, or maybe coax Dad into mini-golf. As teens we would get dropped off and sit in the bleachers. But my all time drive in memory was the Ape-a-Thon at the Willowbrook Drive in in NJ, where my sainted father took me and 4-5 pals to see all 5 Planet of the Apes films shown in sequence. He made it to the end and then to work a few hours later. ---
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/87 "2023-09-03T20:02:43Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Thanks for starting this thread. I’ve gotten a big kick out of reading everyone’s experiences, and I _remember_ drive-ins quite well. > > And how unusual for an OP to come back and post such a gracious comment! You’re very welcome. I must say, I practically only knew about drive-ins from pictures and brief descriptions. I wasn’t aware there was so much of a surrounding culture and that they served so many purposes. People have shared plenty of great stories here, some very funny. The thought of all these kids being brought there in their PJs brings a smile to my face. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/88 "2023-09-03T20:03:27Z")
Thanks for starting this thread, @themapleleaf ! It’s brought back so many memories! We had a '67 Barracuda with the fastback, and I’d often climb back there after the first movie and fall asleep. My brother, who was two years older than me, always got to sit in the front passenger seat on the (correct) assumption that he was mature enough for the second movie and wouldn’t fall asleep. When I think about the movies I saw as a child, I realize they were almost all at the drive-in - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, My Fair Lady, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, The Sound of Music, The Great Escape, and about the first halves of the aforementioned Tora, Tora, Tora! (which I thought was incredibly boring) and a lot of Bond movies. In high school, my friends and I went on double dates to the drive-in. We’d often pick up McDonald’s and eat in the car, and although there was usually a fair amount of making out, the presence of another couple and the incomplete privacy of the car kept things from progressing beyond that. Oddly enough, I can’t remember any of those movies. 😄 The last movie I remember seeing at a drive-in was The Amityville Horror in 1980. I went with my future husband and a friend of ours, and at a very tense moment in the film, the future Mr. Legend grabbed our knees and said, “Boo!” So that was also the last horror movie I ever watched with him (but I married him the following year anyway). ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/89 "2023-09-03T20:07:29Z")
While we’re reminiscing, here’s a thread from 8 years ago about drive-ins and memories thereof: > [@Most Mundane, and probably pointless](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-mundane-and-probably-pointless/734989): > > So here it is, 530ish in the am. Mrs. Guest and I took my fosterling to his first drive-in theater movies last night. Minions smiley and Jurassic World :dubious::rolleyes:slight_smile:rolleyes::dubious: and heh! fosterling was more fun to watch than the movies almost. Anyway, I’ve been up for a while now with the fosterling because we allowed him to have too much popcorn and soda:smack:. totally mundane(ish) part of life So that got me wondering, how in the hell are drive-in theaters a fading thing … ---
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/90 "2023-09-03T20:08:46Z")
> [@InternetLegend](#): > > We had a '67 Barracuda with the fastback, and I’d often climb back there after the first movie and fall asleep. My brother, who was two years older than me, always got to sit in the front passenger seat on the (correct) assumption that he was mature enough for the second movie and wouldn’t fall asleep. When I think about the movies I saw as a child, I realize they were almost all at the drive-in - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, My Fair Lady, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, The Sound of Music, The Great Escape, and about the first halves of the aforementioned Tora, Tora, Tora! (which I thought was incredibly boring) and a lot of Bond movies. Wow, you did see a lot of good movies in drive-ins! I have to say I’m amazed at the variety of theaters that once used to exist. There was a time when the movies really were the place to be. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/91 "2023-09-03T20:19:58Z")
One of our drive ins, the one I mentioned with the planet of the apes marathon, was known for it. We saw all three of Sergio Leone’s dollar trilogy, various groups of James Bond movies, all of the Pink Panthers (Peter Sellers versions) and more ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/92 "2023-09-03T20:33:08Z")
The point about smoking applied even more so to non-standard brands. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/93 "2023-09-03T20:48:08Z")
My cars in high school were either my mother’s 1968 Ford LTD or my Dodge van. Both were just made for drive-ins. I remember a triple-feature of 3rd run Pam Grier films: _The Big Doll House_, _The Big Bird Cage_, and _Women In Cages_. Perfect movies for ignoring and steaming up the windows. A few years later we got beer all over the rug in my van when Bruce the Shark made his first appearance. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/94 "2023-09-03T21:00:18Z")
I’m sure I saw many movies at drive-ins when I was a kid, but the only ones for which I have an indelible memory are _ **Texas across the River** _ and _ **The Dirty Dozen** _, a double feature in Denver, CO, in August 1967. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/95 "2023-09-03T21:18:07Z")
I think the last time I was at a drive-in was the summer of '74. I went with some of the morons I knew in high school to see _ **Busting** _. The scene I remember best is the one where Logan Ramsey nails the hooker in the dentist’s chair. _“You have remarkable skin!”_ ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/96 "2023-09-03T21:30:09Z")
You know, a Dean Martin Matt Helm movie is pretty good when you’re in your jammies, half asleep and draped over the front seat (“No, I’m not sleepy.”). ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/97 "2023-09-03T21:53:04Z")
You probably never would have seen movies like that if your parents hadn’t taken you to a drive-in. They weren’t exactly kid-friendly! ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/98 "2023-09-03T22:00:27Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > We went a few times when I was a kid. I think it was cheaper for the carload than to pay separately for admission for every member of the family. Also, we were bundled up in the back seat and could, and did, fall asleep back there. And of course the family can bring whatever food it wants. Exactly why my parents took my brother and me in the late '50s. We had a station wagon so we lay in the back and never made it through the entire movie. Also, they didn’t have to find or pay for a babysitter. When we stayed in the Thousand Islands we used to take our kids to a drive-in in Canada. That’s the last I’ve been to. My daughter used to go to one in San Jose where they closed the box office for the last showing of the second movie, so they could, get in free. My favorite, which we never went to, was one off of US 1 in north of Philadelphia which showed X or R rated movies. There was a hotel right next to it, where I’m sure those on the upper floors could see the screen. A novel hotel amenity. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/99 "2023-09-03T23:20:34Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > > [@hogarth](#): > > > > the movies were Cloak & Dagger and Red Dawn. > > And when you woke up the next morning…? 😄 I give up. What’s the joke? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518/100 "2023-09-03T23:55:55Z")
I was insinuating those movies were so boring that they put you right to sleep and you slept the entire night through at the Drive-in. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-is-the-appeal-of-going-to-a-drive-in-movie/989518.md?page=6)